Bear cub spotted in north Peoria, captured outside library

A bear cub was tranquilized outside a Peoria library on Sunday morning.

Bears are rare in the Valley. On average, the Valley sees about one bear every three years, according to The Game and Fish Department.

Peoria police spokesman Jay Davies said he's never heard of a bear in his northwest Valley city during his eight years working with Animal Control.

"He was hiding and sheepishly peeking out of his location near the library when they spotted him," Davies said.Police had received a call Saturday night from a man who saw the young male black bear in front of his home on the 27500 block of North 8th Drive at the foot of West Wing Mountain.

Peoria Animal Control and police officers responded, but lost sight of the bear after calling Arizona Game and Fish officers to help tranquilize him.

The next morning, a call came in around 5:30 a.m. with a bear spotted near Sunrise Public Library, near Lake Pleasant Parkway.

Police officers formed a loose perimeter around the bear and waited for Arizona Game and Fish Department officers to arrive. The bear was tranquilized around 8 a.m.

Young bears are not usually aggressive unless cornered.

The healthy male bear is a year and a half old and weighs about 80 pounds, according to the Arizona Game and Fish Department.

Officials said they plan to release him in northern Arizona. Black bears usually remain with their mothers until they are 2 years old, but earlier separation is not uncommon, according to Game and Fish.

It's likely the bear wandered down from the foothills of the Bradshaw Mountains into town. Bears are known to wander into town from the mountains on particularly dry years and when they are young, said Rick Langley a game specialist from the Pine Top Region of the Game and Fish Department.

He said young bears are attracted to developed areas because it's easy to access food from garbage cans and pet food dishes.

"It is not uncommon to find young bears in very strange areas," Langley said.

He said he thinks some young bears avoid detection by wandering into town through dry river beds.If you see bear Langley advises against approaching or letting your dogs loose around it.